The First Stone- Part I

Below is the poem entitled The First Stone- Part I which was written by poet
Eileen
Manassian. Please feel free to comment on this poem. However, please remember, PoetrySoup is a place of encouragement and growth.

The First Stone- Part I

As they threw her to the ground
He quickly drew back into the crowd
Adjusting his clothing
Hoping to go unnoticed
To fit in
He watched her
Cover her bare breast
With his prayer shawl
Why hadn't he been smart enough
To grab that from her?
She long raven hair
Was a poor covering
For her nearly naked form
The anger around him
Was a wave of sound
That throbbed over the crowd
Increasing in volume to a feverish pitch
They had planned it well
The scheme to trap him
The young upstart Nazarene
The young rabbi
The revolutionary
Who spoke of love
And a new kingdom
He had been paid well
To seduce her
The timing had to be right
But he almost forgot all that
As he tasted her beauty
And drank in her wonder
As he ravished her body
She was exquisite in every way
And just when he was about to
Consummate the treachery
They burst in on them
As they pulled him off of her
He heard her screams as she
Tried to clean away what
He’d left behind
Some of them pawed her
Hungry
Wishing they could have a turn
Yet knowing that there was a greater purpose
They restrained themselves
Unleashing their anger
In rough handling
And in shaming her with words
That made him cringe
In the town courtyard they found him
Speaking to the masses
Healing…
And they flung her to the ground before him
Demanding to know
What to do with an adulteress....
What would he answer?
Either way…they had him nailed
To stone her was the thing to do
According to the law of Moses
Would he uphold it?
If he let her go
They could say he had come to abolish
The law…and he would lose
The confidence of the masses
As he stared at her
Through the gaps in the crowd
He almost felt guilty
Almost...
The money he would be paid
Would help in many ways
And the pleasure had been intense
He looked for a stone
Had to play the part
If someone else recognized him
Or that cursed prayer shawl
He would be stoned as well
He shouted
Louder than the others
More vehemently than the others
“Stone her, Stone the prostitute”
The pushing and shoving lessened
The sound was dying out
His eyes were transfixed on the young Rabbi
What was that expression on his face?
What was that look in his eyes?
He took in the woman at his feet
Balled up on the ground...
She was frantically trying to cover herself
All the while
Sobbing out her shame
Her long hair veiling her face
In his eyes
There was no disgust
No revulsion
No hate
A shadow of indescribable sadness crossed his face
As he bent down beside her...
Please Continue to Part II for the ending.